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A Moment In The Life of Jay Imerman

June 11, 1993 1:50 am EST

Profound?  Maybe.
Inspiring?  Perhaps.
Humorous?  Depends.
Definitive?  Definitely.

As I gaze into the night sky, I wonder:

This two-dimensional perception of the stars, what is the actual relative positioning?

Which are stars, and which planets in our solar system?

Which stars are no longer there, but are still perceived because the last of their light has not yet reached the Earth?

Which stars can we not yet see because their light has not yet reached the Earth since their birth?

Why hasn't someone from another planet contacted me?  If a spaceship were to land right now and offer me the opportunity to leave this planet, would I?  Definitely.  The decision was made before the offer was given.

Then, the concept of me.  This seems the most wonderous of all:  I am Me.  What is this self-awareness?   This self-questioning?  Who and what am I?  Am I merely, as I suspect, just a manifestation of the phenomena of massively complex electromechanical reactions?   Is self-awareness merely a delusion brought about by the effect of these chemical reactions?

And yet, this seems the most intriguing of all.  I think that everyone has the same delusion of self, but only a few have realized the illusion.   The concept of a "soul" that could possibly exist beyond the cessation of life seems ludicrous - the atoms and molecules of star-generated matter simply change form, becoming transmuted into some other substances.  In fact, this is happening constantly, even during life, but other matter is transformed into ourselves to replace that which is transferred out.

One question which has plagued me for a very large number of years:  why do I get tired?  What is it that makes me tired?  Why do I need to sleep?  Why is it that, right now, I can feel fatigue affect not only my muscles but my mental processes as well?  Why ask why?  (Bud Dry).

This has been some (probably) useless philosophizing by a philanthropist wanna-be.  Until next time, sayonara.

        - Jay

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Copyright © 1993 by Jay Imerman.  All rights are reserved.  No works, in part or in whole, may be reproduced in any form without the express written permission of Jay Imerman.